Trevilian Station
Battlefield Parcels Saved!
Thanks
to the Herculean efforts of the Trevilian Station
Battlefield Foundation (TSBF), two parcels of the
largest all-cavalry battle of the Civil War have been
purchased. These two sites are the beginning of what
will be a 10-stop driving tour of the battle. The
Foundation hopes to be able to purchase other parcels in
the future and possibly open a small visitor center at
one of the sites. Until now, the entire battlefield was
privately owned and no sites were open to the public.
The
all-cavalry Battle of Trevilian Station centered around
the Virginia Central Railroad. This line was a vital
link for Lee’s army defending Petersburg, bringing
essential supplies from the Shenandoah Valley and other
areas of the Confederacy, and offering a facility for
rapid troop movements and communications. In June 1864,
Grant dispatched Sheridan and two of his three cavalry
divisions to make one last determined effort to sever
this Confederate artery permanently, and then continue
on to the Valley to aid Gen. Hunter in Lynchburg.
Sheridan’s forces collided with Confederate cavalry
under Wade Hampton in the area of Trevilian Station, and
a two-day mounted and dismounted battle began. After
nightfall on the second day, his ammunition running low
and losses unusually high, Sheridan withdrew his
troopers from the field and returned to the Union lines
east of Richmond.
TSBF
was able to secure an ISTEA grant from the Commonwealth
of Virginia and Louisa County to assist with the
purchase. The Foundation also has a grant to develop a
10-stop driving tour of the Trevilian Station
Battlefield.
Congratulations
to the Trevilian Station Battlefield Foundation for a
job well done! You can find more information about TSBF
on page two of this newsletter. If you would like to
assist TSBF with their efforts to purchase and preserve
the Trevilian Station Battlefield, please contact Ed
Crebbs, President, TSBF, P.O. Box 124, Trevilinas, VA
23170.
Continuing Efforts at Cedar Mountain
The
Friends of Fredericksburg Area Battlefields (FoFAB)
continued its efforts on the Cedar Mountain Battlefield
in Culpeper this spring. On March 18, several FoFAB
members turned out for a workday at Cedar Mountain
Battlefield. Our mission was to clear brush away from
the fence dividing the property. Now that the area is
cleared, there will be adequate room for tour groups to
walk along the fence even when crops are growing in the
field. When the work was done, many of those who
attended the workday received an impromptu tour of the
battlefield from Buddy Simms, a local resident who has
spent much of the past several years researching the
battle. Each worker also received a 50% discount off the
cost of the Cedar Mountain bus tour FoFAB sponsored on
April 1.
Greg
Mertz, Supervisory Historian of the Fredericksburg and
Spotsylvania National Military Park, led our bus tour.
All proceeds from the tour, print raffle, and donations
received during the tour, will be donated to the Civil
War Preservation Trust to assist with the purchase of
the battlefield.
FoFAB
hopes to continue its partnership with the Civil War
Preservation Trust (CWPT) in the future by preparing an
interpretation plan for the battlefield, and then
possibly raising the necessary funds to place
interpretive signs at strategic locations on the
battlefield. If you would like to assist us in our
efforts at Cedar Mountain, please feel free to contact
us via the mailing address, e-mail address, fax, or
phone number listed on the front of this newsletter. We
welcome your involvement in maintaining and interpreting
this significant Civil War site.
Project Management, Leadership, and
Teamwork
Once
again this May, the Friends of Fredericksburg Area
Battlefields (FoFAB) had the opportunity to assist
Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) students in the
Fast-Track Master of Business Administration Program.
When VCU wanted to teach its Fast-Track MBA
students a lesson in Project Management, Leadership, and
Teamwork, they turned to FoFAB for some help.
Virginia
Commonwealth University sent a full bus of its Fast-Track
MBA students on a Chancellorsville Battlefield tour
led by FoFAB Education Coordinator Lee Ann Williams. The
students were divided into two teams. Appropriately
enough, VCU provided one team with blue hats and the
other team with gray hats. The assignment was to study
the battle in detail to determine what could have been
done to change the outcome of the battle. The students
had all done research on the battle before the tour and
spent the time on the bus ride from Richmond watching a
video about the battle and discussing some of the finer
details of the battle. It became quite evident during
the tour that the students had genuinely studied for
this assignment as they asked probing questions about
battle strategy, command structure, and personal
motives.
FoFAB
is pleased to be able to offer this type of program as
part of our commitment to providing quality educational
programs on the Civil War battles fought in the
Fredericksburg area and the Civil War in general. If we
can assist your organization with a special education
program or if there is a Civil War related topic you
would like us to consider for a future educational
program, please contact us at (540) 972-9954
New Book - To the
North Anna River
Please reserve a copy
of Gordon Rhea’s new book To the North Anna River
for me. Enclosed is my check written to FoFAB to cover
the cost of the book at this special 20% discount and
any applicable shipping charges.
_____ I plan to pick up
my book at Gordon Rhea’s June 17 Bus Tour.
_____ I plan to pick up
my book at Gordon Rhea’s June 17 Lecture.
_____ Please mail my
book to the address below. I have enclosed the $4
shipping fee.
Name
______________________________________________________
Address
____________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________
Phone
_____________________________________________________
1864 Cavalry Actions
Bus Tour
Saturday, June 17, 2000
Led by
noted Civil War historian and author, Gordon Rhea, the
tour will cover the cavalry actions of 1864 including
Todd’s Tavern, Yellow Tavern, and other sites.
The bus
will depart from the Gordon Road commuter lot on Rt. 3,
west of Fredericksburg, Virginia at 8 a.m. and return
about 5:00 p.m.
Participants
should bring a lunch and beverages.
The
cost is $50 per person.
To
participate in this bus tour, please complete the form
below and mail it with your check for $50 per person to
Friends of Fredericksburg Area Battlefields, 13100
Wilderness Park Drive, Spotsylvania, Virginia
22553-8220. Checks should be made out to FoFAB. If you
have questions, please feel free to contact us at this
address or call (540) 972-9954, Fax (540) 972-3521, or
e-mail: robwilliams@erols.com.
A confirmation letter, including more specific
directions to the Gordon Road commuter lot, will be sent
once the check is received. The tour will take place
rain or shine. We are limited to only one bus so get
your registration form in quickly!
1864
Cavalry Action Bus Tour on Saturday, June 17, 2000
Name
_____________________________________________________
Address
___________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________
Phone
_____________________________________________________
I would also be
interested in a bus tour on the following
subject/battlefield
__________________________________________________________
Have You Paid Your
2000 Dues?
The
FoFAB membership year runs from January 1 to December
31. If you have not paid dues since October 1, 1999,
your 2000 membership dues are now due. Annual membership
dues are $10 per person/family. Please make checks
payable to Friends of Fredericksburg Area Battlefields
or FoFAB. Please complete the membership application on
page three of this newsletter.
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